The number of local parents with driver's licenses suspended due to unpaid child support is at a record high.

Currently, 23,541 driver's licenses are suspended in Hamilton County due to unpaid child support. With the county handling about 85,000 child support cases, that means more than a quarter of those who owe back child support in the county have lost their licenses.

Suspending a driver's license is a "last resort" used by the Department of Jobs and Family Services, said department Director Moira Weir. "Suspending a license is intended to get people's attention and get people paying," she said.

Suspension numbers in Hamilton County have increased by nearly 50 percent the past five years. In 2009, only 16,455 licenses were suspended for failure to pay child support, according to data from the department.

Among the reasons for the increase, according to department spokesman Brian Gregg, is a lower threshold for license suspension. Evaders can now have a license suspended for failing to pay half of 90 days' child support as opposed to previously requiring not paying a full amount of child support.

In addition, the department is "getting more efficient at working cases and tracking folks down," Gregg said.

The number of suspensions in Hamilton County is the second highest in Ohio, trailing just Franklin County at 26,241 as of Aug. 4.

Gregg said he thinks the number of suspended licenses in Hamilton County realistically correlates with the number of total child support cases. "We typically say that about a third of parents pay faithfully, a third pay sporadically and another third don't pay at all."

A child support evader can have his or her license revoked after failing to pay half of the owed child support over the span of 90 days.

In honor of Child Support Awareness Month, the Hamilton County Department of Job and Family Services has offered amnesty for the rest of the month to parents with suspended licenses who pay one month's child support and share employment or education information with the department.

Typically, to have a suspension reversed, a payee must either pay the owed amounts in full, present evidence of an employer or steady financial income, or present evidence of inability to work, such as a doctor's statement for medical issues. There are other payment plans for parents unable to do any of the previous requirements, plus individualized solutions for respective families.

"We are always willing to work with people to help make these payments," Weir said. "But we thought this month's amnesty promotion would help to get people's attention and really encourage people to pay."

Kentucky and Indiana also suspend driver's, professional and recreational licenses as a means to enforce child support payments.■